How to Donate Children's Shoes

Gerri GarrickUpdated April 17, 2017

Year after year your children outgrow their shoes at alarming rates, often before their shoes have even worn out. It seems wasteful to throw the shoes away. Why not donate your children's shoes to a child who could really use them? There are plenty of options when it comes to donating shoes, including charities, organisations, churches and stores. Many worthy organisations will be happy to take your pile of shoes and give them to needy children. Not only will you be cleaning out your closets, you'll be making families happy.

Donate your new or used children's shoes to an organisation called "Souls4Souls." "Souls4Souls" was founded to help victims of the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, thousands of whom were left without shoes. This group partners with footwear retailers, churches, civic organisations and schools to provide shoes for children and adults all across the globe. Simply wrap each pair of your gently used shoes in a rubber band and visit the website listed in the Resources section to find participating locations, or the warehouse facility shipping address.

Donate the shoes to your local Salvation Army. The Salvation Army is a Christian organisation that attempts to meet the needs of the community as part of their mission statement. Your donated shoes will be sold for a bargain price at a Salvation Army store, and the proceeds will go directly to the organisation's rehabilitation centres. Visit the Salvation Army's website to find the location closest to you.

Drop the shoes off at a local Goodwill. Goodwill Industries International provides education and career services for disadvantaged people. This organisation accepts new or gently used shoes for resale at their stores. All profits go toward their career and job training centres. Find one of 2200 North American locations by visiting the Goodwill website.

Try asking your church, or any local church, if they could use your children's shoe donations. Many churches have jumble sales to raise funds for various programs, including mission trips, rehabilitation centres and outreaches.

Visit your local thrift store. Thrift stores everywhere are always looking for donations to help stock their shelves with discounted items. Proceeds from most thrift stores go directly toward some type of community social service.

Tip

Get a receipt when your donate your shoes so that you can get a tax write-off. Bring your kids along with you when you donate to allow them to share in the joy of giving. Being generous is often something children grow to appreciate when they can actually see the results and the power of giving.

Warning

Be sure to thoroughly investigate any charity or organisation to make sure that they are reputable.

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About the Author

Gerri Garrick has been working as an actor/singer for the past eighteen years. A graduate of James Madison University, with a degree in communications, she has written several produced plays, as well as a one woman show. Garrick has been sharing her performing arts experience with eHow readers for the past year.